Cyprus talks disappointing
Cypriot President Dimitris Christofias yesterday expressed disappointment over the progress of ongoing talks aimed at reunifying the divided island, after disagreements emerged about the degree of autonomy to be granted to Cyprus’s two ethnic communities. «I feel huge disappointment,» Christofias said during an official visit to Sofia. Christofias began the talks with Turkish-Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat on September 3. He told reporters that it had been decided to set up a federation with two communities but Talat was insisting that more authority be given to each of them. The Greek-Cypriot side believes there is one people comprising two communities, Christofias said, adding that Talat was talking in terms of two different peoples. «That’s a significant obstacle,» said Christofias, while noting however that he was still optimistic a deal could be reached.
